Help, my mother won’t sleep.

As the Risperidone is not working, tell her physician this and he or she will need to find a medication that WILL work. Good luck and prayers sent.

My mom suffered very advanced Alzheimer's and I walked her in the park everyday for 5 years to the point I used a specialized upright walker. She did a quarter of a mile a day. That REALLY helped..She really enjoyed the park..the trees, the fresh air..the birds and people greeting her. I really miss those days. I never gave her any narcotics or psychotropics. Not once. I gave her coffee during the day, even Mountain Dew. Around 3 pm no more caffeine. She stayed up all day, and slept soundly at night. ROUTINE is the most essential thing. Keep them busy and awake during the day you won't have trouble with sundowning at night. Mom died 5 months ago from the complications of liver cancer, not Alzheimer's. She got liver symptoms for one week. She did not suffer because the hospice nurse came daily to make sure she was comfortable and not once we opened the comfort pack. mom knew she was surrounded with love it made her feel secure. Nobody on this planet would have cared for her better than I. She was only bedridden for 2-1/2 months. Her feeding tube kept her very comfortable and she did not have to die of dehydration. She died without pain, in comfort and with love at home. Age 90. With a LOT of health problems..but Alzheimer's did not kill her.

IF this is a new behavior check for UTI. Dehydration is often a culprit causing UTIs. Get an X-Ray of her hip to determine the pain and get it treated. IF she is not exercising/moving that can cause the joints to erode, and they can go down fast or get a blood clot when they are mostly immobile.

Explore the possibility of a Qualified Income Trust, also known as a Miller Trust where you open an account at a bank and whatever amount of money their income is over that prevents them from qualifying for Medicaid is deposited there. That money goes for Mom’s care. Your situation will not get better, only worse. I’m sorry, but thats the hard truth. If you can, make future plans now. Good luck. This is never easy.

Definitely work with her doctor to keep working on the meds since her current dosages are not working.

Yes, be sure she's not dozing all day cuz that'll keep her from sleeping at night.

If changing meds doesn't help, she may need to go into a facility before you and ad lose your sanity.

How long has this been going on?

Explain these symptoms to your mother’s PCP. It often takes a few dose changes to find out what works for your mom.
Also make sure she doesn’t sleep all day thus not sleep all night.